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God’s Covenant with Abram

15After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, ‘Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.’ ²But Abram said, ‘O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?’^{* 3}And Abram said, ‘You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir.’ ⁴But the word of the Lord came to him, ‘This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir.’ ⁵He brought him outside and said, ‘Look towards heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your descendants be.’ ⁶And he believed the Lord; and the Lord ^* reckoned it to him as righteousness.

7 Then he said to him, ‘I am the Lord who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess.’ ⁸But he said, ‘O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?’ ⁹He said to him, ‘Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtle-dove, and a young pigeon.’ ¹⁰He brought him all these and cut them in two, laying each half over against the other; but he did not cut the birds in two. ¹¹And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram, and a deep and terrifying darkness descended upon him.

17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking fire-pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. ¹⁸On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates,

Psalm 27

1  The Lord is my light and my salvation;
      whom then shall I fear? ♦︎
   The Lord is the strength of my life;
      of whom then shall I be afraid?
2  When the wicked, even my enemies and my foes,
      came upon me to eat up my flesh, ♦︎
   they stumbled and fell.
3  Though a host encamp against me,
      my heart shall not be afraid, ♦︎
   and though there rise up war against me,
      yet will I put my trust in him.
4  One thing have I asked of the Lord
      and that alone I seek: ♦︎
   that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
      all the days of my life,
5  To behold the fair beauty of the Lord ♦︎
   and to seek his will in his temple.
6  For in the day of trouble
      he shall hide me in his shelter; ♦︎
   in the secret place of his dwelling shall he hide me
      and set me high upon a rock.
7  And now shall he lift up my head ♦︎
   above my enemies round about me;
8  Therefore will I offer in his dwelling an oblation
      with great gladness; ♦︎
   I will sing and make music to the Lord.
9  Hear my voice, O Lord, when I call; ♦︎
   have mercy upon me and answer me.
10  My heart tells of your word, ‘Seek my face.’ ♦︎
   Your face, Lord, will I seek.
11  Hide not your face from me, ♦︎
   nor cast your servant away in displeasure.
12  You have been my helper; ♦︎
   leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.
13  Though my father and my mother forsake me, ♦︎
   the Lord will take me up.
14  Teach me your way, O Lord; ♦︎
   lead me on a level path,
      because of those who lie in wait for me.
15  Deliver me not into the will of my adversaries, ♦︎
   for false witnesses have risen up against me,
      and those who breathe out violence.
16  I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord ♦︎
   in the land of the living.
17  Wait for the Lord;
      be strong and he shall comfort your heart; ♦︎
   wait patiently for the Lord.

17 Brothers and sisters,^* join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. ¹⁸For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. ¹⁹Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things. ²⁰But our citizenship^* is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. ²¹He will transform the body of our humiliation^* so that it may be conformed to the body of his glory,^* by the power that also enables him to make all things subject to himself. 4¹Therefore, my brothers and sisters,^* whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

The Lament over Jerusalem

31 At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, ‘Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.’ ³²He said to them, ‘Go and tell that fox for me,^* “Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. ³³Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed away from Jerusalem.” ³⁴Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! ³⁵See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when^* you say, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” ’